Young Boomer ready for belated debut

Brock Motum's upcoming Boomers debut has been five years in the making, and the 208cm centre is determined to make every second of it count.

World Cup spots will be on the line for a host of fringe Boomers when Australia's four-match series against China gets underway in Perth on Thursday night.

Motum was on track to make his international debut as an 18-year-old back in 2009, but an untimely calf injury during the Boomers' training camp saw him drop out of the squad for their tour of South America.

Now, Motum wants to make up for lost time when he steps out onto Challenge Stadium on Thursday night.

With NBA centre Andrew Bogut's World Cup availability still up in the air, Motum has the chance to thrust his name into the selection mix if he can impress against China.

After the series, Motum will fly to America for a mini-camp with the Utah Jazz, which he hopes will lead to an NBA deal.

But for now, Motum is focused on making his Boomers debut a memorable one.

"I was lucky enough to play for the Australian under-19 team. Since that day it's always been a big aspiration of mine to play for the Boomers," Motum said on Tuesday.

"If I get to play in this series, it would be a big step. And playing at the World Cup would be another big step."

After failing to get picked up at last year's NBA draft, Motum linked up with Lega Serie A Italian club Virtus Bologna.

Motum averaged 8.3 points and 3.3 rebounds per game during his 25 appearances, but it was far from smooth sailing at the club.

"We had a couple of coaching changes," Motum explained.

"At the club, it was really emotional.

"We'd win one week and everyone would be all happy.

"And then you'd lose a couple of games in a row and you wouldn't see a smile on anyone's face, and no one would want to talk to you."

"I learnt a lot, but I wasn't as consistent as I would have liked."

The Boomers will face off against China in Perth on Thursday and Saturday, before flying to China for the final two games of the series.

With Australia's NBA guns currently unavailable, the 14-man Boomers squad is largely made up of NBL stalwarts, emerging college stars and European-based players.